The Venezuelan government has today hit back at American Vice President Joe Biden for comments he made concerning the situation in Caracas. Nicolás Maduro's government released a statement calling Biden's comments "alarming" and accusing the US of joining "an international media conspiracy" against Caracas. The comments come after Biden, in Chile to attend the inauguration of president Michelle Bachelet, insisted that Maduro "should listen to the Venezuelan people."
"The American government has joined an international media conspiracy which aims to generate a false image of war and general repression in Venezuela, when in reality the situation has been created by artificial violence against the governement," indicated a statement from Caracas. "President Nicolás Maduro, in the name of the Venezuelan Government, rejects categorically the statements made by the American Vice President, Joe Biden, for his disrespect to Venezuelan sovereignty and direct agresssion at the people."
Joe Biden for his part had stated that Caracas "has a basic responsibility to respect the human rights ... the freedom of expression and assembly..and to promise a genunie dialoue," in a country which he called "profoundly divide." The response from Caracas was swift: the text was read by Venezuels's Vice President Jorge Arreaza: "We asked ourselves -- what woud the US President, Barack Obama do if a political organization called publicly for his defeat and begins to execute terrorist actions and disrespects the human rights of the American people?"